


bound to get together

by brahe



Category: Rogue One: A Star Wars Story (2016)
Genre: F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Force Bond (Star Wars), Force-Sensitive Jyn Erso, Getting Together, and some ocs - Freeform, but whoops, force-sensitive aliens, some alien planet i made up, this is mostly fluff, which is not what i intended
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-04-03
Updated: 2017-04-03
Packaged: 2018-10-14 11:56:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10535976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brahe/pseuds/brahe
Summary: They give him the mission because he's their premier intelligence officer, she understands that part. She can even, eventually, wrap her head around the reasons they would choose her skillset for this mission, as well. The one thing she can't get over is the part where she's supposed to be married to Cassian.Or, the one where Jyn and Cassian have to pretend to be married, and it's really not that hard at all.





	

**Author's Note:**

> hello i'm back with fluff that i didn't mean to write  
> i started this like december 20th and i just got around to finishing it. someone's probably done this trope by now but basically they have to pretend to be married. it didn't really come out how i wanted but oh well.  
> in honor of the dvd release. now i can suffer all the time.
> 
> title from shut up and dance by walk the moon bc i was looking for a title and then that song came on

They give him the mission because he's their premier intelligence officer, she understands that part. But she frowns when Mothma hands her a data pad, too.

"What's this?"

"Information for your part of the mission," Mothma says, like it should be obvious, and Jyn looks up in surprise. She looks between Mothma, who's definitely hiding a smirk, and Cassian, who's got this strange, soft look on his face, and feels betrayed.

"I didn't think I was going?" she says, meaning it to be a comment, but it sounds like a question.

"Culture is a significant part of this mission," Mothma says. "The Santurian people take relationships very seriously, and would be unwilling to accept either of you onto their planet if you were not in a committed relationship. To them, that means a soul bond. To humans, marriage."

Jyn may or may not have dropped the data pad in shock.

 

 

She goes straight to the cantina after that, orders the biggest drink they have. She's a good spy for herself, but she's not used to working on orders. And she likes Cassian well enough now that they've worked out some of their major problems, but that doesn't mean she's ready to be married to him. For pretend. Fake married.

"Fake married!" she proclaims, knocking back half her glass. Bodhi raises an eyebrow.

"I mean, aren't you sort of already?"

Jyn sputters.

" _What?_ "

Bodhi shrugs, looking suddenly sheepish. "I don't know, I kind of thought you were already a deal. You share a room. You share your meals. You almost died together. Hell, you wear his clothes like three times a week."

"Hey, his jackets are nice," she says, frowning, staring at the glass in her hands, reevaluating her life choices. "I think I should feel betrayed."

"Look, Jyn," Bodhi says. "At least half the people on this base think you're together." 

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

"I think it's supposed to make you think about a few things."

She sighs heavily and reaches for the rest of her drink, but Bodhi's got his hands on it before her. He finishes it off with a look somewhere between a smirk and a smile. Jyn frowns at him.

"I was going to finish that. I'm gonna need it."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Bodhi says, and it sounds like he knows something she doesn't, and she doesn't like that. Not when it comes to her personal life. He shrugs.

"Tall, dark, and handsome is waiting for you," he says, flagging down a staff member for another drink. He pushes Jyn out of the booth. "Don't screw up."

She walks out of the cantina with a few glances back at Bodhi, who has completely forgotten about her struggles to flirt with the new floor manager from a planet Jyn's never heard of.

 

 

She's made a plan to go back to her quarters and think this over in silence, but she sighs when she remembers it's really Cassian's quarters that's she's commandeered half of. She huffs and decides to head to the data bank, but finds that her feet carry her down the residence hall anyway, without communicating with the rest of her body. Before she's fully realized how much she doesn't want to be here, she's stepping through the door to the room Cassian shares with her.

He looks up from the bag he's packing on his bed to look at her. And then he smiles, and Jyn will never be used to that.

"I was wondering when you'd show up," he says, and he sounds _happy,_ like they're not about to stake this mission and their lives on whether or not they can pretend to be married. Well, she might be exaggerating. But still. 

Jyn doesn't reply, but crosses over to sit on the edge of the bed opposite Cassian's bag. Bodhi's words ring in her mind as she looks around the room. Her clothes, the few she has, are mixed in with his. She thinks his wardrobe has increased in size, and realizes that the shirt she's wearing is actually his. Half of the bathroom is covered in her things, her soaps next to his in the shower, and an extra set of towels on the self. And on the bed, her blanket is tangled in the unmade sheets, and she sort of beings to realize what it means that they even share the same bed.

Cassian places a folded jacket in the pack and leans on his hands on the bed, peering sideways at Jyn.

"What's wrong?" he asks. She frowns, again.

"It doesn't bother you?" she says. "The mission, us..."

"I don't see how hard it can be. And we make the most sense, seeing as how we already live together."

"Right," Jyn nods, but it's absent-minded. She can't stop looking at him, can't stop thinking about all the mindless things she does daily. Like how she wakes up beside him every morning, plays with his bed hair before he fixes it, cleans her face while he's in the shower, pretends to steal his clothes even though he doesn't mind at all, takes the blankets when she's cold so that he'll come closer to her and wrap his warm arms around her waist...

"We'll need to come up with a story to go by," he says, moving on as if he can't tell she's having a life crisis. He probably can't.

"We leave tonight, and we're flying in on a private ship, so we'll have plenty of time to work that out."

"How long?" she asks, still staring off into space.

"Just a couple days," he says, pausing his packing to look at her. There's something off on her face, but he can't quite place it. Yet. "We're not undercover, so no need to maintain low profiles. Just need to talk to the leader and find out if they're willing to trade with the Alliance."

She's still staring at her hands, a thousand thoughts whizzing in her head. Cassian tosses a bag onto her lap.

"You should start packing," he says. "My shirts that you like to wear are on the left in the closet."

 

 

The private ship they're taking is a passenger ship the Alliance has acquired, piloted by Cassian. Jyn's standing just outside the ship as Cassian loads their supplies when Mothma approaches.

"Senator," Jyn greets with a nod. Mothma smiles.

"I know this isn't the typical kind of mission you take," she says. Jyn's mouth pulls into a thin line.

"I don't think I've had enough to get a type," she says. "Besides the memorable one where we all should've died."

"Still," Mothma says, moving on from the topic, because she's seen the medical files from the Rogue One unit, and if she doesn't want to talk about it, then the crew  _definitely_ doesn't want to talk about it.

"The Alliance thanks you. A successful treaty with the Santurians would help the effort tremendously. There is one thing that wasn't in your briefing, though," she says. Jyn's brows furrow. "The Santurians are more in tune with the Force than most beings, but it's an emotional connection. That's why bonds are so important. They can feel how you feel about a person."

"They can feel how I feel," Jyn repeats, sort of deadpan, before what that really means sinks in, and her eyes go wide. "They can feel how I feel! Senator, this isn't going to go very well."

Mothma smiles again, and it's cryptic like the one Bodhi gave her earlier.

"I think it will go smoother than you imagine."

Mothma turns and leaves as Cassian calls to Jyn from the ship.

"We're set to go, Jyn, come on!"

She boards the ship with a kind of sense of foreboding. She may not know a lot about the Force, but she knows you can't lie to it. She sighs heavily and sits back into her seat.

 

 

"So," Cassian says, taking the seat beside her. She's calmed her internal panic enough that she can think about this with a clear head.

"A story," Jyn says, and he nods.

"We need all the basics. How we met, how long we've known each other, when we started dating, when we got married, how we got married..."

"Well."

There's an awkward silence for a moment.

"I'm not very good at this relationship stuff," Cassian admits, and the boyish kind of smile on his face might be the undoing of Jyn Erso.

"Me either," she says with a laugh that's more like a nervous half-chuckle, and Cassian looks at her with an even brighter smile, and she feels like she's looking into a sun. The smile crinkles the skin around his eyes, makes them sparkle, and for a moment she's blinded by how beautiful happiness looks on him.

And when the smile fades a moment later, she notices the smoothness of his skin, and frowns at the thought that he hasn't been happy enough to have laughter lines where he should.

"We met on Yavin," Jyn says. "At the base. It's close enough to the truth that it'll be easy to remember."

Cassian nods. "Good idea."

"We meet...in a meeting on the base. We end up standing next to each other."

"That was five years ago," Cassian says, nodding still. "Do we hit it off right away?"

Jyn laughs. "No, I think we argue a lot at first, and there might be some friendly competition in the cantina, before we really trust each other enough for romantic interest."

"So we started dating three years ago," Cassian says. "And I proposed a year ago."

"Newlyweds, then," Jyn agrees. "We can work out the rest as we go."

"We're out of time, anyway," Cassian says, standing. "We're here."

 

 

Cassian takes them in slowly, and Jyn watches the beautiful scenery of the orange forests and purple skies become larger as they land.

The temperature is warm when she steps off the ship, and the sun heats her skin where her arms are bare. She's changed into one of the few shirts she owns, a sleeveless wrap that comes down to her knees.

"It's beautiful," she says to Cassian as he joins her at the base of the ship. They've arrived at sunset, and the sky is rich dark purple, the orange trees looking like a brilliant fire against the light blue clouds.

 She takes her bag from Cassian and follows him down the sandy path to the short white buildings she can see in the distance. She watches Cassian as they walk, the way the red sunlight shines off his face, creates a halo around his hair. His skin is practically glowing, and Jyn thinks he must be from a planet with similar bright sun. Makes sense, anyway, she muses, with how he seems to glow when he turns his attention to her. She wonders how she never noticed it before. 

 

 

There is a Santurian waiting for them once they reach the rows of huts. Their skin is orange like the tree fronds, and their eyes are blue like the clouds. This one has white hair intricately braided with colorful strands of ribbon.

"Welcome to Santuri," she says. "My name is Kapalina."

"I'm Cassian, and this is Jyn," Cassian says. Kapalina bows, and they return the gesture, sort of stilted. Jyn barely had time to read through the briefing, and she's never been one for accurate cultural interactions anyway.

"Our politics have finished for the day," the Santurian says. "Housing has been arranged for you, and there will be a celebration after the sun disappears. You are welcome to attend, but if your travels have tired you, you will offend no one by staying in to sleep."

Cassian thanks her, and she leads them down the path to a small, white building with an orange frond roof. Kapalina leaves them at the door.

"If you require anything, the building three down on the left should be able to assist you."

Cassian bows to her again, and she leaves them to sort out their rooms.

Jyn's already inside, looking around. There's shutters over several windows, and a large, patterned rug takes up most of the floor. A tub with a spout sits underneath one of the windows, and the large bed is opposite the door. It's probably the nicest room she's ever been in.

Jyn drops her bag on the right side of the bed, and crawls beneath the covers. She sighs. This must be what happiness feels like.

"Good?" Cassian says, and there's a humor in his tone that has Jyn opening her eyes to peer at him.

"Amazing," she agrees. If the Rebellion is going to send her on missions to planets like this, she should have joined years ago.

"Come on," she says, after watching him walk around for what feels like half an hour. "We're staying in, right? Because I'm never getting up again." She folds back the covers on Cassian's side of the bed when he looks up at her with a smile.

"You've got to feel this."

"Okay, okay," he concedes, shedding his shirt and boots as he crosses the room. The bed dips as he sits, and then the blankets warm as he settles in.

"Nice, right?" she says. He sighs and smiles.

"Very nice."

 

 

Jyn wakes before Cassian, and a little while before the sun. She slides out from under the covers, pleasantly surprised by the warm air that greets her. The stone floor beneath her feet, though, is cool in a satisfying sort of way, and she pads silently to the door.

There is a stillness outside unlike any she's ever experienced. She's seen the sun rise on her home world, but the land was already alive with the sound of the morning rain. And she's stood in the stillness before destruction, watched death come towards her in a silent wave of fire, but still this is different. It's as if the whole planet is holding its breath, awaiting the moment the sun will crest the horizon.

The temperature is already warm, despite the hour, and she sits happily on the ground outside the hut. A breeze blows at her hair and ruffles her clothes.

Cassian finds her just after the sun rises. The door swings open and he's got one boot on, shirt half tucked, and his eyes are wild. They land on her, and she watches in confusion as the tension drains from his body and he collapses on the ground beside her.

"Are you okay?" she asks, attention now solely on him, sunrise forgotten. He nods, runs a hand through his hair.

"Wasn't sure where you went," he says, sounding almost sheepish. Jyn blinks. She's left bed before he's woken a couple times before and there's never been a problem. She narrows her eyes at him.

"What's wrong?" she says, and he sighs. The slightly harried look is back in his eyes.

"Just a bad dream," he shrugs, but she sees through the answer. Scarif wasn't just a bad dream, no matter how hard they've tried to make it so. The troubles they've seen aren't just bad dreams.

But she says nothing, instead presses her shoulder against his and watches the way the rising sun turns half his face golden bright.

There's something about the world as the day begins that brings forward thoughts usually unthought, and Jyn finds herself thinking that she likes the way Cassian feels next to her, in body and in spirit and she doesn't like the thought of living without him. It scares her, more than a little, because she's relied on only herself for years, and needing someone else the way she's come to realize she needs him complicates things.

"You're thinking too loud," Cassian says, a deep, soft hum in the early light. Jyn's lips quirk into a sort of half smile, and she lets her gaze leave him to watch the horizon once more.

 

 

Their first meeting goes better than she thought it would. The Santurians talk strictly business, and both Jyn and Cassian appreciate the direct approach. In half the time it would normally take, the beginnings of an agreement are laid out. Before she realizes it, they're drawing to a close, agreeing to meet again the day after tomorrow.

"I'm sure you understand our desire to put aside business and politics in honor of our holiday tomorrow," the leader, Pua, says. "Our culture is very important to us."

Cassian bows his head in agreement. They follow Pua as he leads them out of the hut and into the sunlight.

"I hope we make no intrusions on your celebration," Cassian says. Pua smiles and puts a hand on his shoulder.

"Of course not! Our holiday is one of family and sharing. Everyone is welcome. We shall teach you our dances and songs, and you will have a wonderful time, I'm sure!"

Pua hands them off to Kapalina, who takes their hands with a large smile.

"Now that you have rested, you must come to the night events," she tells them. "It begins when the sun starts to set. There will be a fire in the center, and lots of music!"

"It sounds wonderful," Jyn says, with a smile she actually means, and isn't that strange. 

"Don't be late!" she says, waving as she leaves them at the lunching hall. Jyn watches her go, feeling a kind of warmth that's still rather foreign to her, until she feels Cassian's eyes on her. She turns to him.

"What?"

Cassian continues to stare at her, and she's about to ask again when he speaks up.

"You have a pretty smile," he says, and immediately blushes. Jyn's eyes widen in surprise, and her smile this time is small and half hidden. She's reminded of her thoughts from earlier in the day about where Cassian fits into her life, and her smile gets a little bigger.

 

 

The sun has turned the sky the same beautiful purple as the night before when Cassian and Jyn arrive, a large fire already blazing in the center of the town. There's people everywhere, and they weave their way through the crowd, Cassian's hand on her back, until Kapalina catches sight of them.

"My friends!" she exclaims, taking them both by the hand. She leads them to a large area beside the fire, where most of the people are gathered. Jyn notices a band not far to the side.

"You must dance with us," she says. "The steps are easy to learn."

Jyn smiles and looks at Cassian, who's looking away from her.

"I'm sure we'll catch on quickly," Jyn says, and Kapalina leaves them to join the line that's forming.

Jyn stands and pulls Cassian with her. "Dance with me," she says, and he doesn't resist.

 

 

It's been a very long time since Jyn has danced, but she's always loved it. Loved the way it made her feel free, the way it flowed through her like the Force through a Jedi. It brings back fond memories of her life _before_ , when her parents twirled her around between them in the kitchen, her father singing along to songs Jyn can't remember.

Cassian stands across from her, tense. Jyn smiles.

"Relax, Captain," she says, a smirk on her face. "I'm sure you'll manage."

The music starts, then, and the line around them moves forward. Jyn watches those beside her, mimicking their footsteps and arm motions. It's a simple partner dance, and though Jyn's never danced one, she's seen plenty.

The song rises and falls, and Jyn allows herself to get lost in it. She's holding Cassian's hand and they spin around the point between them. Jyn closes her eyes, shakes her hair behind her and laughs, a delightful sound Cassian's never heard before. He watches her, mesmerized, and nearly trips over his feet with the way he's so distracted by her.

The dance changes, coming to an end, and Cassian finds himself with an armful of Jyn. She's pressed to him, flushed and grinning, breathing hard. Cassian swallows.

Jyn meets his eyes, then, and he sees the slight frown that tugs at her forehead.

"What's wrong?" she asks.

"I-" he begins, but he's not sure what to tell her. That he loves the way she laughs when he twirls her around him? That he knows he doesn't deserve her? That he's terrified by the sudden need to always be with her? 

Jyn runs her fingertips across his forehead, bringing him out of his thoughts.

"You're thinking too much," she says. "We have no work to do. Let go for a little while."

He smiles at her, but it's tight. If he allows himself to let go, he knows he won't be able to stop. She's everything he wants, but can't have.

The band picks up their instruments again, and Jyn's smile is like the sun. "Maybe another dance will clear your head."

The dancing slows as the night grows on, and some point well after midnight, Jyn's seated close against Cassian, Kapalina and several of her friends with them.

"You must tell us!" she says, leaning forward a little. Her face is flushed, but Jyn hasn't seen any drinks. There's something almost pure in the way excitment makes her giddy. Jyn turns to Cassian.

"There isn't much to tell," she says, a sort of half-shrug sliding off her shoulder. It's mostly true, anyway, because they're not actually married, something that Jyn finds she has to keep reminding herself of.

Cassian's eyes meet hers and her heart is suddenly pounding. 

"A year ago," Cassian says, and Jyn catches the tightness in his tone. "We were on the beach. But it wasn't a vacation. It had been a long day, a long week, really, and I was ready to sleep for a year."

There's a look in his eyes that Jyn doesn't know how to name. It's clouded with memory, but it's starting to look an awful lot like a face she often saw on her father, something that's becoming so much like _love_ that Jyn's not sure she knows how to handle it. 

"It was a work thing, and it was looking uncertain as to whether we could complete the trip or not. We ended up on the beach, at...at sunset. And she turned to me, hugged me, whispered those stupid phrases like "everything will be okay" until I started to believe them."

He's still staring at Jyn, watches as her face goes dark with memory, as her eyes grow shiny with tears she won't shed.

"And I hugged her back, and I knew," he says, reaching out to take her hand, squeezing it in his. "I knew that I could never live my life without this woman by my side. So I asked her to marry me, and the rest is history."

Kapalina's smile is wide and bright, and there's a round of clapping and awws from the group with them, but Jyn's world has narrowed down to herself and Cassian. She's breathless and dizzy for a reason that has nothing to do with dancing. Cassian reaches a hand out, slowly, as is giving her a way to pull away, and brushes her hair away from her face, then brings his hand down along her jaw.

"Dance with me again?" he says, practically a whisper, and she finds herself nodding before she can even think.

 

 

He follows her into their hut, both laughing, breathing hard. They danced until the second moon began to set, and somewhere along the way, everything that had been tense between them disappeared.  

Inside, she turns to him, bathed in shadows. She's beautiful, he thinks, like always. Her cheeks are red and her hair a mess, but her eyes are shining. He regards her from the door.

"In my culture," he begins, quiet in the darkness. "Dancing is a way of courting. The dance we did tonight is like the one I watched my sister do on the day of her wedding."

Jyn stays still and quiet, and he begins to think he's overstepped the already fuzzy boundaries they have, but then she's moving towards him, slow and rhythmic, and he can feel his heart race.

She takes his hands and pulls him gently. He follows her to the mattress in the back of the room. She sways as she walks, and he wants to sweep her into his arms, wants to dance with her again.

"I love to dance, you know," she says, and there's a look on her face that he can't translate, but he understands the way her hands tighten around his. Slowly, and much more intimately than before, he leads her in a dance slightly different from the one earlier, and as they move, he wonders when he fell so deeply in love.

 

 

The sun wakes him, warmth and soft light seeping in through the windows. He allows himself to come to consciousness slowly for once, savoring the feeling of a good night's sleep fading into a pleasant wakefulness.

And so, understandably, it takes him longer than it should to register the body pressed against his, but when he does, he smiles.

He blinks, opening his eyes to see Jyn's head pillowed against his arm. Her eyes are closed, and he studies the sleep-softened lines of her face and the content little smile on her lips.

Only, she's not asleep, and Cassian's half-reverence is cut off by a light laugh from his bedmate. "I can feel you staring at me," Jyn says, and then her eyes open, and Cassian will never get used to the depth of them. "Take a holo, it'll last longer." 

Cassian sputters and lightly wacks the side of Jyn's head with his hand. Jyn stretches along side him, bringing her arms up and over her head, back cracking along her spine. Cassian's distracted by the feeling of her body pressed in a line along his, the soft sounds she makes as her joints pop and resettle, the way her hair brushes against his neck, soft and just this side of tickling.

"The festival is starting soon," Jyn says, bringing him back to the present. He hums in response and watches as Jyn rolls out of bed. "Do you plan on watching me all morning?" she asks, humor in her voice. Cassian's never spent this much time opening observing her, was always careful to not let on how much his eyes were continually drawn to her, and it should be awkward, but it's not. Must be something to do with this mission and this planet and the bubble that's appeared between them and the real world. 

"If you let me," he shrugs, elbow bent and hand behind his head, because he's suddenly feeling bold. There's the faintest trace of a blush high on Jyn's cheeks, but she must feel it too, because she turns her back to Cassian as she lets her sleep shirt fall off her shoulder.

In the space between a heartbeat, all of the lines that they've been dancing around are suddenly gone. Cassian's eyes are glued to Jyn, watching as soft fabric falls away, revealing more of her skin than he had ever hoped to see. In one moment Jyn's bare before him, and in the next she's sliding the straps of a sundress over her shoulders, and in the next Cassian is off the bed and standing behind her. He gently runs his knuckles over her shoulder and down her arm, feather-light touches, and she turns her head back towards him. There's something in the air around them, and Jyn's necklace is glowing a very soft orange, and everything seems to stop. Jyn turns to face him, meets his eyes with a whisper of his name, and he's suddenly presented with everything he dreamed about but never thought he'd have. It feels like this is where they've been building up to since he broke her out of prison, that this is where they were always meant to be, and he thinks that he'd like to kiss her, when there's a loud horn outside.

"Festival," Jyn whispers, not stepping away.

"Right," Cassian says, and takes a long moment before he moves back to change into his own day clothes.

 

 

They arrive together to the town center where they danced the night before, but now the area is lined with tables of food, and there are hundreds of Sontarians bustling about. Pua finds them easily.

"My friends!" he greets, and there's a sparkle in his eye that makes her think about Mothma's comment on their Force sensitivity. "We are about to begin the Sun Feast, you're just in time." 

The Sun Feast turns out to be a gathering on the warm stones in the center of town, plates of food balanced on laps and legs, and they eat as thanks are giving to the sky and sun. It's warm and beautiful in a way Jyn's never experienced, and she turns to Cassian, who looks more at home than she's ever seen him, face tilted into the late morning light, profile glowing ever so slightly. He cracks an eye open at her, and the smile he gives her is brighter than the light around them.

The day continues in a similar fashion, and at one point Jyn finds herself seated beside Pua, Cassian swept up in a round of line dancing. 

"Your partner is an interesting man," Pua says. Jyn bites down a smile.

"Interesting is one way to describe him," she agrees, and Pua laughs.

"The Force moves around you in a way I have rarely seen," he continues. "It has changed since you've arrived, but that is to be expected." He shrugs and that sparkle from before his back in his eyes. "Whether or not you were in a relationship is none of my business," he adds at Jyn's embarrassed look. She doesn't miss the way he uses the past tense.

"There was already something there, and I have had the great joy to watch it unfold between you. It is truly a wonderful sight, when two souls bound by the Force finally become one."

Jyn looks at her hands, then to Cassian, who's smiling and laughing and dancing. It stirs something in her chest, and Pua chuckles.

"Happiness is before you, Jyn Erso, and it is yours for the taking."

Jyn meets Pua's eyes, then, a small smile on her face. "I was worried this would go a lot worse," she admits.

"Worry no more, my dear. There's a celebration on, and there's no room for anything but joy. Go on, dance with your man. He keeps looking this way."

Sure enough, once Cassian finds an out, he makes his way to Jyn and Pua.

"This is wonderful," he tells Pua, and Jyn is pleased that he means it. She takes a moment to think on how she can tell, on how well she's learned to read his face, but then he's turning that bright-as-the-sun smile on her and she loses all thoughts.

"Come on," he says to Jyn, pulling her to her feet and along with him, Pua's happy laughter trailing behind them.

 

 

As it turns out, the ending of the celebration is a planet-wide beach camp-out, simple tents and bedding pads laid out on the beach just beyond the town. The festivities have died down for the night, and Jyn finds herself curled into Cassian's side underneath the overhang of their tent.

"We leave tomorrow evening," Cassian says, and Jyn sighs.

"Unfortunately."

They lapse into silence again, and her thoughts drift to their brief stay and the things she's learned about Cassian.

Eventually, he nudges her shoulder. "What are you thinking about?" he asks. She shrugs.

"Where are you from?" she asks, turning to look at him. His eyes are on the horizon. 

"It's called Fest," he says, voice soft in the growing dark. "I left when it was destroyed. It was a lot like this planet. Very warm, always sunny, large lakes surrounded by blue forests. I always loved the beaches. Red sand disappearing into the tides of green water, the waves always crashing against the shore... I was constantly outside. My mother tried getting me to wear sun protections, but clearly, that didn't work," he says, and there's a laugh in his tone that doesn't cover up the sadness in it, but that's genuine nonetheless.

"Is that why you have an accent?" she asks, and he chuckles.

"Galactic standard was not, actually, my first language. There aren't many people left who speak or understand my native tongue."

"Tell me something."

There's silence for a moment, and she worries that she's overstepped into the dangerous territory bittersweet memories create, until he's speaking again, a light, melodic sound that flows over the frequent vowels and dips on the accents. She's mesmerized by the sound, and almost doesn't realize when he's stopped talking.

"What does it mean?" she asks, and he turns to look at her. There's something in his eyes that, maybe a week ago she wouldn't be able to name, but she's beginning to recognize it, because she feels the same.

"I said that I'm glad you like this planet," he says. "And that I've been wanting to take you somewhere nice."

"This is definitely somewhere nice," she laughs, a smile in her face. It almost feels weird to be smiling as much as she is, but instead it feels kind of normal. Like this is what she was meant to be doing, where she was meant to be, who she was meant to be with. She leans into Cassian's side a little more, reaches out to thread her fingers between his, and she feels when he takes a breath and tenses.

"I also said that you look very beautiful in the sun, and that I might be in love with you."

Cassian's whisper is so quiet she almost doesn't hear it, but she does, and she looks up at him, a different smile on her face. There's a little fear in his face, as if he's afraid she'll turn him down, like he doesn't know that she's been feeling the same thing building between them.

"Might be?" she asks. Cassian tilts his head.

"Am," he admits, and Jyn kisses the shy little smile off his face. 

It takes Cassian a moment to get with the program, but then he's kissing her back, arm around her waist, and it's something Jyn didn't even know she wanted. 

"I'll have to thank Mothma," Jyn says, and Cassian's face twists into a grimace.

"Please don't."

Jyn giggles and lets Cassian surround her, loses herself in the feeling of him warm against her, the sky a right dark navy, stars like a blanket over the planet.

"I'm glad you stayed," Cassian says, pressing a light kiss to her temple.

"Like I could leave you," she says, and the truth of it is a little startling, but it's completing in a way nothing else has been. Cassian smiles at her, beaming like a sun in the night.

They’re quiet for some time, a pleasant warmth settling over Jyn, when Cassian bumps her shoulder.

“Why’s your necklace glowing?” he asks. Jyn, startled, looks down to see her Kyber crystal emitting a soft orange-tinted light.

“Oh! It’s, um, well, it’s us,” she says. _Smooth, Erso,_  she thinks. Cassian's brows draw together.

“What does that mean?"

Jyn takes a breath. “We’re sort of bonded? In the Force.”

“Force bonded?” Cassian repeats. “Like a soul bond?"

“Maybe?” Jyn answers, and her voice is increasing in pitch as she begins to feel a little terrified. What if this isn’t what he wants?

“That explains why Mothma chose us, I suppose,” Cassian says, and he’s not looking at her. Her gaze flicks around his profile, but she can’t read him like this.

Jyn wants to say something, anything, really, but she just opens and closes her mouth a few times, thinking of nothing.

“The elders in my village always talked about Force bonds,” he says eventually. Jyn lets out a breath she didn’t know she was holding. “Never thought it’d happen to me.” He looks at her then, and the stress drains from her shoulders.

“You’re not angry?” she asks, just in case.

“Of course not,” Cassian says. “I would’ve picked you, anyway," he adds, and punctuates it with a kiss that leaves her knees weak and her heart racing.

And. Well. There it is.

 

 

They finish the treaty the following morning. The Santurain people are glad to be of assistance to the Alliance, if it is only as a trade partner.

“I’m sure this will benefit both sides greatly,” Cassian says as they’re escorted to their ship. Pua smiles.

“Not as much as this trip has benefited you, my friend,” he says, and Jyn’s laugh is a surprised one. Cassian flushes bright red, sputtering. Pua claps his back, rests a hand on his shoulder.

“Go,” he says. “Return to your people. But do not forget what you have learned here,” he tells them. Jyn’s smile is soft, fond.

“Thank you for a beautiful stay,” Jyn says, bowing slightly. Pua returns the gesture, smiling.

“You are always welcome to visit,” he says. “Every warrior needs a place to rest."

Cassian follows Jyn up the ship, settles into the captain’s chair beside her. He looks at her as they clear the atmosphere, bright sky fading to black.

“Jyn,” he says, and she turns to him, face open and happy. Cassian decides this is what he wants to spend the rest of his life seeing.

“Marry me?"


End file.
